A note from Sarah Page: Scott originally wrote this post about the Schwab Bank High Yield Investor Checking Account debit card in March of 2014. I am re-posting it now as a reminder to all of you who haven't jumped on this train yet. Summer travel season is coming up... if you don't have this debit card, get one now! I have saved hundred in fees over the years. Notes added on the original post by me are scattered throughout in bold.

The Platinum Card® from American Express comes with an annual fee of $695 (Rates & Fees). But it also come with a litany of valuable benefits that make up for the annual fee, at least for the first year.

Unfortunately many of those benefits are not automatic.

A couple days ago I wrote a post clarifying the Chase 5/24 rule and it's relationship to small business credit cards. A reader asked the following question in the comments:

"How do I figure out if I can apply for the United Explore Card under the 5/24 rule. I didn’t keep track of when I applied for the various cards I have.

In the context of food, an omnivore eats all types of energy sources: animals and plants, and even algae, fungi, and bacteria. In the context of travel rewards, a points omnivore collects any mile or point they can to get more travel. Their motto is a dollar saved is a dollar saved.

This post is for all my points omnivores out there and particularly for those who strive to be one and are just starting to collect rewards cards.

Once you’ve opened five credit cards from any bank in the last 24 months (not counting most business cards), Chase will likely deny you for all of their travel rewards credit cards.

5/24 is a buzzword in the miles and points sphere. It refers to the fact that Chase will cut you off from eligibility for their credit cards once you’ve opened five credit cards from any bank in the last 24 months (not counting most business cards).

If you're just starting to collect miles and points, possibly the single best piece of advice is to sign up for five Chase cards before moving on to any other bank's rewards cards. This post is going to talk about which five cards you should choose, depending on a few factors, and why.

The fact of the matter is that Chase will cut you off from eligibility for their travel rewards credit cards once you've opened five credit cards from any bank whatsoever in the last 24 months (not counting most business cards).

Aer Lingus was just added as a 1:1 transfer partner for American Express Membership Rewards.
Complete List of Membership Reward Partners
Membership Rewards can be transferred to 18 airline and two hotel loyalty programs at the moment.

Like British Airways and Iberia, Aer Lingus is owned by IAG, so it was already possible to circuitously transfer Membership Rewards via Iberia or British Airways Avios. Members of AerClub also earns rewards called Avios, that while a separate rewards program from Iberia Avios or BA Avios, has similar rules and redemption rates that are distance-based.

At the end of February I traveled to Rio de Janeiro and Buzios, Brazil. I'm a huge fan of Brazil and have traveled it more than any other country. The image above is from Buzios.

Using a sweetspot on the Etihad award chart, I flew roundtrip between Buenos Aires and Rio on Brazilian airline GOL for 18,000 Membership Rewards + taxes. Cash tickets are notoriously expensive between the two cities, so the value per point I got was over three cents.

Applying for business credit and charge cards is a great way to earn more miles and points than you already do, but many people don’t apply for business cards because they incorrectly believe they don’t qualify.
Do you qualify for a business card?
Myth #1: A business must have employees.

Your business can be a sole proprietorship, meaning only you work on the business. That’s how MileValue started, just Scott, and he has received several business cards for MileValue.